road trip!

Chloe and I left early (6:30 AM) for Bishop this morning. According to the recorded message on the Yosemite Park conditions number, Tioga pass was still open, so we decided to drive through the park rather than the typical northerly or southerly winter routes. It was slow going on 120, and I wish someone would explain to me why so many people tint their car windows; the only thing it seems to accomplish is to make it impossible to see beyond them. Are we supposed to be filled with awe and intrigue about what's going on inside? Grey Poupon, cocktail weenies and champagne, I presume?

Anyway, Tuolomne was spectacular as usual, but cold
.

It took us ~6 hours to get to the Peabody boulders from Berkeley, and we warmed up on the Buttermilk Stem

then went on to the "Get Carter" boulder and finally to the beekeper boulder in the Pollen Grains area

where we climbed until it got painfully cold and our muscles were too worn out to continue.

Unfortunately, "The Outdoorsman" is not $54 anymore. In fact, it's not called "The outdoorsman", but is now a "La Quinta inn" and costs $89 including breakfast and taxes. We had dinner at Las Palmas, where I had a really good Asada plate, then headed back to the hotel, thankful that we werent in the climbers campground that night.